Challenge
Locate replacement platform for development
of next generation ServiceSuite product.
Existing J2EE plaform failed to deliver
on the reliability and flexibility expectations of
telecom companies and
complex Internet service providers.
In particular, J2EE made it difficult
to maintain, update and upgrade ServiceSuite across
the large number of distributed nodes used in
a typical installation.
Solution
Progressive migration of ServiceSuite processing logic
to NetKernel resulting with the complete suite hosted on
NetKernel.
Result
Within four months migration complete.
ServiceSuite, running on NetKernel,
can be installed and maintained easily.
NetKernel guarantees that deployment
of the system onto all processing nodes is
straightforward.
All system components are synchronized by version
which means that migrating and upgrading the system
is a rock-solid, reliable operation.
Edge Technologies ServiceSuite
Edge Technologies BV,
is an industry leading ISV providing
software to telecommunication companies.
Edge Technologies' ServiceSuite product increases the
scope and reduces the cost of delivering services and support
to telecom customers.
About ServiceSuite
ServiceSuite is a comprehensive set of products
which dramatically reduces the complexity and cost of
monitoring and managing a network.
To retain customers telecom companies and Internet
service providers must provide excellent customer
service.
This becomes increasingly difficult as customer expectations
for new services increases while technology continues
to change.
New and existing services are offered on top of a common
broadband infrastructure creating a complex operational
challenge.
ServiceSuite greatly simplifies and speeds up the
processes used to deliver excellent customer service.
ServiceSuite provides a standardized interface between
the internal network infrastructure and a telecom
or Internet service provider's business processing systems.
Figure 1: ServiceSuite Architecture
ServiceSuite's architecture includes a large number
of "probes" running within their customer's network.
The probes are service access devices acting as the "scripted" eyes for
the operator that provide
information on problems in networks or service platforms, assist the order
processes and execute configuration changes.
The probes communicate with the ServiceScanner and ServiceRouter which
retrieve network information from data sources (typically an SQL
database).
The ServiceViewer is an OpenLaszlo[1] based front end for both
user and administrator screens.
In a typical clustered installation multiple chains of ServiceScanner engines and
probe hosts run in parallel for redundancy and capacity reasons.
Java J2EE Foundation
Edge Technologies developed the original ServiceSuite product
using Java J2EE technologies.
However they were not satisfied with the results.
"We faced serious challenges when increasing the scale of
ServiceSuite installations.
In addition installation maintenance and updating to new releases
was very difficult", said Sven Wallage, Chief Operating Officer at Edge
Technologies, "We consider building our own execution platform.
However we picked NetKernel instead because it provided a superior
platform immediately and most importantly, it increased our
own productivity."
Migration to NetKernel
Edge Technologies was determined to build the next version of
ServiceSuite on foundation that would address the challenges of
deploying and maintaining a system running on many nodes within
a network.
Their core development team downloaded and played with NetKernel,
becoming immediately convinced that many of the challenges could
be solved by using NetKernel as the foundation.
They contacted 1060 Research and were "impressed by the excellent support
and knowledge", said Sven.
After a brief training session, development using NetKernel
began in July 2007.
At the end of 2007 all ServiceSuite components had been migrated to NetKernel.
Looking forward, in Q1 of 2008 the ServiceSuite product
with be enhanced with an easy-to-use administration GUI, load balancers and a rock solid
versioning system that will provide an enormous increase in availability for
their customers.
Sven adds, "With NetKernel we find that we write significantly less code
than with Java J2EE. Now we focus on implementing new features ourselves
instead of writing lengthy specification documents to be implemented
by out-source software development centers.
With NetKernel we can quickly build new products to capitalize
on what we learn about our customer's needs."
Summary
Edge Technologies found 1060 NetKernel to be superior to Java J2EE
as their foundation for ServiceSuite and future products.
Finally Sven added, "we are very pleased with our decision to use NetKernel. It gives us a
competitive edge and allows us to focus on building new features
while our current installations run reliably and predictably".
References
[1] OpenLaszlo
http://www.openlaszlo.org
Telecom Infrastructure
